Sorani and Kurmanci are the two major dialects of Kurdish language. They are different in both grammar and vocabulary. People of these dialects may understand each other but they are not able to speak and write in the other one. Unlike Kurmancis that use Latin script, Soranis prefer to use Arabic script.

Language facts:

Number of speakers: more than 8 million

Locations spoken: Iraq and Iran

Related languages: Iranian Languages

Arguments in favour

Supportsupport Excellent idea

SupportSupport with several arguments:

We have kept Sorani in the Kurdish Wikipedia (ku) until now. One of the reasons was that there were not enough contributors. Now there are enough contributors.

It becomes increasingly difficult to maintain two scripts in ku.

Kurmanji and Sorani are linguistically sufficiently different.

Kurdish (Sorani) is the second official language in Iraq now. --Erdal Ronahi 02:19, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

SupportSupport which is first or second, is not an issue for now. Here is about configuration and settings. Sorani (Arabic Indic script) doesn't fit under Kurmanci (Latin script). otherwise both are important and Kurdish. --Sia Neriman 08:30, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Kurdish Sorani has sufficiently independent linguistic characteristics from Kurmanji dialect and uses a different alphabet which is Arabic-based. Most of the Sorani speakers can't read and write in Kurmanji as it uses Roman-based alphabet.

Many a Kurdish scholars have recognized bi-standard system for the Kurdish Language, including professor Amir Hasanpour [1]

Writing in rtl and ltr directions using both alpahbets (Roman & Arabic under the current Kurdish Wikipedia configuration is next to impossible.

Supportsupport Thousands of pages of the Kurdish classic literature is written in Sorani. --Hemin 02:19, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Supportsupport Even though both "Kurmanj" and "Sorani" are subgroups (accent) of Kurdish language, they can cause of misunderstanding and misinterpretation for people who speak the language with these accents to each other. This can happen in different situations. For instance during regular conversations, or reading/understanding complex and professional contents.In general, "Kurmanj" and "Sorani" are not useful to each other since misinterpretation is so high while they are used in different places. --Marmzok 11 April 2009

Support We want Wikipedia in Kurdish (Sorani)--Khelani 19:24, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Support, important language with ~10 mln number of speakers. --~Innvs: 06:21, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Support The difference of Sorani and Kurmanji is not just a matter of simple transliteration. Alefbe 20:03, 4 August 2009 (UTC)

Arguments against

Central Kurdish(Sorani) as an official speaking and writing standard for KRG / IQ. cause of using different alphabit as Kumani, it made sense to do that. I support this action.

This is not an argument against, is it? --Erdal Ronahi 12:27, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Other discussion

"People of these dialects may understand each other but they are not able to speak and write in the other one". How is it possible to understand but not be able the speak to them? Could a system similar to what is being done for the Serbian Wikipedia be used (Latin <-> Cryrillic) for Kurdish Wikipedia (Latin <-> Arabic)? --MarsRover 00:48, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

The question of writing is obvious: they are using different alphabets. The speaking is similar. Imagine a German and a Dutch speaker. The German will understand a lot of what the Dutch speaker says, but not be able to speak Dutch himself. It is similar with the Kurdish dialects. The Kurdish Wikipedia is already using a transliteration system, but it does not work well enough. --Erdal Ronahi 12:26, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Understanding does not have that much to do with speaking and writing. I understand Arabic some 75 percent but I can't write a line or speak a sentence with certainity. When we speak of understanding it does not mean absolute understanding. Soran and Kurmanj people understand each other patially not totally. Also the the bi-alphabet case is different from Serbian. In serbian Latin and Cryrillic alphabets are both left to right but in Kurdish Kurmanji and Sorani the case is vice versa. They are opposite in direction. --Cyrus abdi 12:55, 7 April 2009 (UTC)